News/Releases

Dealerskins releases Psychic Certificate for automotive dealers

Based on the popular Promotion Center Certificate, Psychic Certificate offers car shoppers a custom-designed coupon

NASHVILLE, TN [11/19/09] - Dealerskins, a division of Dominion Dealer Solutions and leader in innovative web services for automotive dealers, has released Psychic Certificate, a new feature in Promotion Center.

This new tool automatically creates a certificate on the automotive dealership home page promoting the vehicle that the shopper last viewed. An image and title of the vehicle appear alongside the dealer’s offer.

This addition to the popular set of Promotion Center tools allows car dealers to more effectively target their customers using behavioral marketing technology, which follows Internet users’ activity. The custom-designed coupon generates leads for auto dealers by requesting that the shopper submit a simple form. The dealer is then alerted to the shopper’s interest.

Psychic Certificate was developed in response to Dealerskins research showing that the Certificates tool is the highest lead-generating platform within its slate of products. Because Certificates is a part of Promotion Center, Psychic Certificate is a free service to dealers who already utilize Dealerskins Promotion Center tools.

“Our customers have seen a lot of success from our Promotion Center tools, and we wanted to expand on that by creating a new feature that makes it even easier for dealers to cultivate leads,” said Jason Ezell, Dealerskins founder and national accounts manager. “Psychic Certificate is a unique feature for the automotive industry, and we look forward to seeing how it helps dealers streamline their online marketing processes.”

Dealerskins co-founder to speak at J.D. Power and Associates’ 2009 Automotive Internet Roundtable

NASHVILLE, TN [10/14/09] - Dealerskins, a division of Dominion Dealer Solutions and leader in automotive web solutions, announced that Jason Ezell, industry expert and co-founder of Dealerskins, will participate in a panel discussion at J.D. Power and Associates’ 2009 Automotive Internet Roundtable in Las Vegas.

On Thursday, Oct. 15, Ezell will answer questions about how to use mobile devices for automotive marketing and branding. With many dealers moving toward mobile games and applications to help sell inventory, Ezell will touch on the usefulness of this method of marketing and other successful ways of employing it as an advertising venue.

“There are so many misconceptions about how our industry can benefit from utilizing mobile marketing,” said Ezell. “With a variety of right and wrong ways to use this type of technology, I expect this session will arm automotive dealers with the critical knowledge needed to determine how mobile marketing can work for them.”

Before founding Dealerskins in 2000, Ezell worked in car dealerships for nearly 10 years, serving as sales manager, finance manager and general sales manager for Toyota and high-end luxury dealerships. He also worked at Autotrader.com as a regional account manager and sales trainer. Ezell is now a sought-after speaker and presents regularly to NADA 20 Groups nationwide on website strategies.

Dealerskins Customers Benefit From New iPhone Application

NASHVILLE, TN [06/25/09] - Dealerskins, a division of Dominion Dealer Solutions and leader in automotive dealer web services, has announced that its customers who take advantage of its free inventory distribution service will now receive even more exposure via the iPhone application released by sister company GetAuto.com.

The iPhone application for GetAuto.com, available for free on iTunes, displays vehicle photos, maps and details on the iPhone (including the new iPhone 3G S) and iPod touch, which means Dealerskins customers who utilize the free inventory distribution product will have their listings available to the 30 million (and counting) iPhone and iPod touch users. The application’s email capability and user-friendly search feature allows consumers to search by vehicle description or dealer name, and immediately submit a lead to the closest dealer.

"GetAuto’s iPhone application arrives on the heels of several recent updates Dealerskins has made to enhance the performance and effectiveness of our customers’ websites," says Eric Brown, general manager at Dealerskins. "In fact, we’ve nearly tripled our research and development investments in order to continue to keep our dealers ahead of the trends. GetAuto’s iPhone app is an excellent complement to our recent innovations and helps customers stay ahead during these competitive times."

Dealerskins launches new updates for automotive dealer websites

NASHVILLE, TN [06/18/09] - Dealerskins, a division of Dominion Dealer Solutions and leader in automotive dealer web services, has released two upgrades, a tool to quickly create vehicle specials and a miles per gallon (MPG) feature. Both are designed to give dealers the ability to further enhance the vehicle descriptions in their inventory listings.

Quick Create Specials allows dealers to rapidly create a vehicle special directly from the inventory administration tool. Displaying consistently updated vehicle specials on websites is a key way for dealers to bring shoppers back for repeat visits, and Quick Create Specials makes it a simple, two-click process. This product enhancement allows Dealerskins customers to focus more time and energy on selling cars, versus making updates to their websites.

The MPG feature, another tool designed to attract repeat site visitors, gives dealers the ability to display a vehicle’s fuel efficiency (MPG) in the vehicle details pages. Having MPG data available in the inventory provides consumers with even more useful information when shopping for their next purchases. And, when dealers add that detail to the listings, customers can sort and filter vehicles by desired MPG.

"We have always designed websites with car shoppers in mind, and with these two new updates in place, dealers will have better tools to attract car shoppers to their website and business," says Eric Brown, general manager at Dealerskins. "We are committed to our customers and take pride in giving them the tools necessary to run a successful dealership."

Dealerskins hires Jefts as new national sales director

NASHVILLE, TN [05/15/09] - Dealerskins, a division of Dominion Enterprises and leader in automotive web solutions, has announced the addition of Shelley Jefts to the team as the new national sales director.

Based out of Dealerskins’ Nashville, TN headquarters, Jefts will have responsibility for all sales activities, developing new initiatives to drive revenue and increase product awareness and managing accountability and communications within the sales team.

"I am very excited to be a part of this highly energetic and creative operation," says Jefts about her new position. "I am very impressed with the common goals and interactions among the departments here, and I look forward to further developing the sales force so we can make a major contribution to the company’s revenue."

Jefts brings to the table strong marketing and management skills from her tenure with companies such as Cox Auto Trader/Auto Mart, where, as regional director, she was responsible for the profitability of 29 publications in 11 cities.

Jefts has also made it a priority to dedicate plenty of time to serving her community. Prior to relocating to Nashville, Tennessee, she served as treasurer for the City of O’Fallon Parks Board, past president for the O’Fallon Chamber of Commerce and business development director for Cox Enterprises’ Charitable Giving Committee. She was also named "Person of the Year" by the O’Fallon Chamber of Commerce, and she received the first "Friend of Fort Zumwalt School District" honor.

"Shelley’s professional background and winning personality will be highly valued assets as she works with our sales team," says Eric Brown, general manager at Dealerskins. "We are excited to have her on board and look forward to seeing her take the initiative to help us continue to be the leader in our industry."

Dealerskins integrates tools to enhance website offering to participating Mazda dealers

NASHVILLE, TN [04/16/09] - Dealerskins, a division of Dominion Enterprises and leader in automotive web solutions, has further strengthened their partnership with Mazda North American Operations by releasing a set of powerful tools for use by their Mazda dealer customers.

Dealerskins recently rolled out a system that gives Mazda dealers the ability to automatically display incentives and special offers from all three tiers on their dealership websites. By providing their zip code, dealers can retrieve information specific to their region, including comprehensive disclaimers and legal information for special offers.

"We’ve used cutting edge web technology to integrate our Mazda dealer websites with information available on MazdaUSA.com," said Aaron West, development manager at Dealerskins. "The incentives data available to our Mazda customers and their site visitors is updated in real time, providing a more comprehensive shopping experience with less maintenance work for the dealers."

Dealerskins has also implemented a Mazda-compliant lead format that routes leads through Mazda’s Quote Router tool at no cost to the dealers. It enables them to track leads through tools they’re already familiar with, while removing randomly generated spam, spider leads and duplicate leads. The new Quote Router helps Mazda dealers remain compliant with Mazda standards on how to respond to incoming leads.

Another tool available for Dealerskins’ Mazda customers is the newly launched My Mazda Dealer Online (myMDOL). This portal provides dealers and their authorized vendors with the ability to enhance their web presence by being included on MazdaUSA.com, and it allows dealers to start a relationship with the multitude of visitors to that site.

Dealerskins hires Nicholson as new customer support manager

NASHVILLE, TN [04/06/09] - Dealerskins, a division of Dominion Enterprises and leader in automotive web solutions, has announced the addition of Cori Nicholson to the team as the new customer support manager.

With extensive experience in the complexities of running a successful customer service department, Cori will be an invaluable resource and will also serve as a member of the executive team at Dealerskins. She’ll be instrumental in enhancing the levels of support provided to each customer, including the Enterprise Dealer Support group, now approaching its one-year anniversary within the department.

With a bachelor’s degree from Western Kentucky University, Nicholson brings a well-rounded education and background in customer service to Dealerskins.

While in college, she began her career in customer service at Comdata Corporation as a customer services specialist. Over the next 10 years, she moved through the ranks as training specialist, manager of customer relations and director of customer relations.

Nicholson has continued to sharpen her leadership skills by staying involved in a variety of programs offered by local institutions.

"Customer support at Dealerskins is a top priority, and this is why we are very excited Cori has joined us," says Eric Brown, general manager at Dealerskins. "Her extensive customer service experience and strong customer focus are just the ingredients needed to ensure our customers remain number one."

Dealerskins goes mobile with dealer websites

NASHVILLE, TN [02/17/09] - Dealerskins, a division of Dominion Enterprises and leader in automotive dealer web services, has announced that the inventory and Redline performance content on its dealers’ websites are now accessible through mobile devices, such as iPhone, BlackBerry, Palm Treo and many others, making it more convenient for car shoppers to look for vehicles while on the move.

With nearly one in every six mobile subscribers using their devices to access the Internet, Dealerskins saw a great opportunity for automotive dealers and has made their websites easy to view on those mobile devices.

Effective immediately, all Dealerskins websites include code that detects when the site is being accessed by a mobile device and automatically takes the user to a page optimized for mobile devices. From this page, visitors can browse inventory or vehicle data including interior and exterior colors, safety information, performance and warranty data and vehicle features via Dealerskins’ Redline.

Auto shoppers also have the ability to submit their contact information using their mobile devices, which in turn increases leads for dealers.

"Through a variety of smart tech solutions, this rollout of our new mobile platform allows us to direct mobile users to our customers’ inventory with speed and accuracy," said Jason Ezell, founder of Dealerskins. "It also enhances the lead volume for all our customers. We are very excited about this outcome and remain committed to providing the industry with leading solutions and results."